The Restless Leg Syndrome Child: A Case Of “Unfairly Reprimanded”?

Many people are unaware of “restless leg syndrome” as a condition, let alone of the discomfort to a restless leg syndrome child.

I was a restless leg syndrome child, without being aware that anyone else experienced those sensations; until I discovered quite by accident one day that my father experienced exactly the same thing.

Restless leg syndrome is a neurological brain disorder affecting movement, especially in the legs. The feeling can be difficult to describe accurately. A restless leg syndrome child may describe it as “a funny feeling in my legs, like they just want to DO things! They want keep moving. I feel as though I must go and climb a mountain – or just run and jump about!”

If you’re uncertain of the condition or about the symptoms, I’d suggest that you check the internet for restless leg syndrome help as a starting point, because I assure you that when a child experiences it, the symptoms simply won’t be ignored, no matter how you reprimand the child to keep still! You need to know about it.

The symptoms appear when a person is at rest, rather than during physical activity. Consequently, a restless leg syndrome child could be sitting quietly watching television, and start wiggling his or her legs, shaking them about, or trying to stretch them. A worse scenario, however, could be during a church service, or when the child is told to sit quietly in the presence of visitors – or similar circumstances. I shudder to think how often a child has been severely reprimanded, and then punished because he or she insists that she CAN’T sit still!

Another reason you need to be able to identify a restless leg syndrome child is because, very often, it happens at night. The primary time seems to be from about 7 or 8pm at night to about 4am in the morning. Very often it happens in bed, making it almost impossible to get to sleep. If it occurs while asleep, at best a fitful sleep could follow with a lot of threshing about, but often it will actually wake one, and an extremely restless – and frustrating – night could follow. Therefore, for the restless leg syndrome child, extreme fatigue may occur the following day.

The restless leg syndrome child will almost NEVER think of telling you that “a funny feeling” in her legs is the reason that she’s tired, frustrated or fidgety! So please be aware of those symptoms – and if you think that your child may be a restless leg syndrome child, please consult a physician.